Tears of the Storm
by Stormbender
Summary: ZukoOC Zuko meets an old friend from back when he lived in the Fire Nation. Better than summary... I hope... Anyway, please read and review.


Hello! No flames, OK? If I really did something that offends you, then you may flame, but other than that, keep all criticism constructive, OK?

Also, for those of you that have read my other story, Rayne, I promise, I WILL update... eventually...

I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.

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Skylark walked through the forest, the light brown hair that'd fallen out of her bun fluttering in the wind. She sighed, her violet eyes sparkling in the light of the sunset that filtered through the trees. A fully-grown female wolf walked beside her.

As the sun began to dip further below the horizon, she noticed smoke rising from the ground about half a mile away. _Best-case scenario: someone willing to give me shelter, _Skylark thought. _Worst-case scenario: Fire Nation. _She gritted her teeth as she thought of the nation she was running away from… the nation that caused her so much pain. She beckoned to the wolf, Arina, and together they silently ran towards the smoke.

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Zuko sat by a small pile of twigs and leaves, and lit the pile on fire. He stabbed a fish on the end of a sharp stick and stuck it in the fire. He sighed as thunder rumbled in the distance. How long had it been since he'd thought of her? Two years? Why did she suddenly appear in his mind?

_It must be the storm,_ he thought.

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Skylark and Arina had been running for about five minutes. Before they even reached the smoke, someone demanded, "Who are you?" She ran the final few steps and saw a girl with black hair tied up on top of her head standing up and facing her, arms crossed. "Well? Who are you?"

"H-how did you know I was running here?" She looked around as she caught her breath, and saw three more people were sitting around a campfire, all looking at her and Arina. One was a bald boy with arrows on his head, another was a girl with a long braid and a lemur sitting on her shoulder, and the last was a boy with a ponytail.

"You… you're… the Avatar…" Skylark dropped to her knees and leaned to the ground, her arms supporting her. She stared at the ground and lifted one arm to wipe away the tears that fell. A small smile crept upon her face. "All this time… all those years of wishing… and you're… you're finally here…" She sat up and looked at them. "The rumors… the rumors of all the great things you do… they're true…"

"Who _are _you?"

Arina stepped in front of Skylark and growled menacingly. The three people sitting backed away a bit. "Arina…" Skylark put a hand gently on the back of Arina's neck, and she quieted. Skylark stood up. "My name is Skylark." She looked right at the girl. "And you?"

"Toph," she said. "Aang, Katara, and Sokka." She pointed to each of the people as she said their names. "Now what are you doing here?"

"I… I need shelter for the night. Please, may I stay with you… just one night?"

All of them looked at each other, except for Toph. Aang looked at Skylark and nodded. "Thank you… thank you." She sat down near the fire, and Arina lay down next to her.

Suddenly, Toph stood up again. "Someone else is coming…"

A voice came from within the shadows of the trees. "Well, well, well… look what we have here."

The hair on the back of Skylark's neck stood on end. She stood up and turned around. "No…"

"Yes." The person stepped out of the trees. "So how _have _you been, 'Lark? It's been _quite_ a while, hasn't it?"

"Azula… Mai… Ty Lee…" Skylark narrowed her eyes. "Go away. Get out of here. _Leave._"

Azula smirked. "Now, is that any way to act?"

Skylark drew her sword from its sheath and held it in front of her. "I'm serious. Get. Out."

"Oh, so you fight with a _sword,_ do you? I'd think you'd use your… _unusual _abilities." Skylark's grip on her sword tightened, and she gritted her teeth. Azula laughed. "Well, if it's a fight you want…" she said as she took a fighting pose, "then it's a fight you'll get!" Mai reached for her knives and Ty Lee struck a fighting stance, but Azula held out an arm. "Now, now, three on one? That's not really fair, now is it?"

Arina growled and stood up. Skylark lifted her sword and ran towards Azula. Just as she was about to bring it down on Azula's head, Azula raised a blue-fire-covered hand and stopped the sword. "Is that really the _best_ you can do, 'Lark?"

"Do… _not_… call… me… _'Lark!_" Skylark yelled as she wrenched her sword out of Azula's grip.

Azula laughed again and punched Skylark hard on the side of her face. She fell to the ground, and looked up at Azula with hatred. A minor burn was on her cheek. "I hate you," she said to Azula.

Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph all started to get up, but Skylark yelled, "NO! This is MY fight! Stay out of it!"

While she was distracted, Azula lifted a flaming fist and whacked Skylark on the head. Skylark fell to the ground. "Damn you…" she muttered as the shadowed figure of Azula melted away, along with everything else.

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Well, how do you like it? Please please please please please review!!!!


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